Image & Text Strategy
In my developing my image and text strategy, I was inspired by this manuscript to look for other mediums in which the boundary between text and image was blurred. I found that this was the case in modern magazines, though not quite so literally as in Harley 647.
Beyond the more basic strategy of pairing images with relevant text, modern magazines utilize the aesthetic dimension of text. These magazines tend to give the visual appearance of text, typography, as much attention as the images that may accompany it. This does not have to be complicated or even very “artistic;” for me, it can be accomplished using variation. One way in which I have found this virtual magazine medium to be frustrating is that the magazine builder does not allow me to use a wide range of fonts, or font adjusting controls. Nevertheless, I will try to use a variety of sizes and styles of fonts to highlight importance aspects of text (titles, keywords) and to keep things visually interesting.
Another common characteristic of modern magazine page design is the breaking up of text into smaller, shorter sections. There is an element of visuality in this that I would like to replicate. In my mind, blocks of texts form “shapes,” and these shapes can be moved around, and changed, to create new visual experiences for the reader. One obstacle I’ve found in working towards this objective is that the assignments to be put in this book are much longer than the average “quick tip” you might find in a modern magazine. An apt model for the breaking up of text in this way, but not quite as small, is a (well thought out) textbook. In a textbook, usually greater ideas are broken down into smaller concepts that can be understood separately, but make the most sense all together. I have attempted to break up the text in a logical way, while still imitating these styles.
I intend to take advantage of this virtual medium and use more space than I might otherwise. At the same time, it will be important not to spread information so thin that it loses cohesion, and for the grouping of information (visual and textual) to make sense.
I want to use a variety of page layouts to keep things visually interesting, and also to challenge myself to come up with new ways of presenting image and text side by side. My strategy for page layouts is to use space and variation to create clear, visually engaging pages. Some will include more images, some more text.
In short, my strategy will be to strive for a balance between variety and consistency. My goal is to engage the reader through the use of varying typography and page layouts, while maintaining some uniformity that ties the work together.